(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an under-nail support apparatus and to a method of applying the support to a fingernail that allows the nail to grow while preventing disease and damage to the nail plate (nail top) and to the hyponychium (skin under the nail) and thus promotes longer and more beautiful nail beauty without degrading nail health.
(2) Description of Related Art
It has become common practice among a large percentage of women to have nails which are aesthetically pleasing and sometimes lengthy to create a “finished' look. But, the everyday activities of cooking, cleaning, typing, performing manual labor and the like, expose hands to nail injury. As a result, it is necessary to clip damaged nails thwarting the achievement of the desired look. The desire for stronger, longer or more beautiful nails, may not just be aesthetic. Individuals like classical guitarists depend upon strong nails and may have need to reinforce their nails in a safe and healthy way.
To support a finished look, several artificial nail lengthening techniques have entered the marketplace. Many of the techniques providing a desired look or strength, require an anchor to the top live part of the exposed natural human fingernail. (For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,354,304 to Yong Jin Chang, U.S. Pat. No. 5,638,835 to Joann Franz and Rudolph Liedtke, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,832,936 to Sandra and Bruce Pruchnic). These artificial fingernails, which are placed directly on top of the natural nail, are relatively easy to use but they provide a temporary solution due to “popping” off. Other popular and longer-lasting artificial nail lengthening solutions include, but are not limited to, gel nail, silk wraps and acrylic nails. All of these methods may negatively impact nail health.
Acrylic nail technologies bond an artificial nail tip to the distal end of the live part of the natural fingernail. As a result, a step-down ridge is created by the interface of the top surface of the natural nail and the artificial tip. This ridge is filled in with an acrylic substance. Since acrylic does not adhere well to the natural skin layer on top of the human nail, the skin layer is removed by filing and/or buffing the nail plate (top of the nail), which often weakens and damages the nail plate. Once the skin layer is removed, the entire top of the now weakened natural nail is covered with the liquid acrylic substance which hardens as it dries. Because the human nail continues to grow, regular fill-ins with the acrylic substance are necessary to maintain attractive nails. The fill-in cycle of covering the abraded nail plate with acrylic, growing of the nail, the nail ridge appearing then subsequently filling in with more acrylic creates a dependency upon the technology to maintain the look associated with acrylics as they are currently used. Each fill-in cycle further deteriorates the natural nail and when the user stops using acrylics, she is often left with an indentation in the nail plate. Upon removal, this technology can damage the nails even more. Acrylic is hard to remove and requires lengthy chemical soaks further worsening the nail condition. Removal can also involve pulling on the nail causing pain and separation of the nail plate from the nail bed.
Gel nails are similar to the acrylic. They too require filing down the natural nail top before the application of gel. But gel also has the unique and added disadvantage of repeated exposure to harmful UV lights.
Regardless of the technology (i.e. acrylic tips, acrylic, gel, silk wraps) used to lengthen the nails, they all require the filing and buffing nail tops, bonding directly to natural nail, filling in as the nail grows and using of chemical soaks for removal. The common disadvantage of the present techniques is they involve interaction directly with the top of the live exposed natural fingernail and compromise the strength, thus weakening the nails natural ability to maintain length and also leave them vulnerable to disease. Another disadvantage is that these methods promote fungal or bacterial growth between the layer of the natural human nail plate and the artificial nail. These methods are expensive, time-consuming and counterproductive to human fingernail health and growth.
Prior art recognizes the need for an artificial nail device that would not involve the top of the fingernail but rather supports the nail from underneath. U.S. Pat. No. 4,408,622 to Carl H. Meyerhoefer represents a hybrid over and under the fingernail approach to enhance the nail. Here, the convex edge of the fingernail is inserted into an artificial wedge-shaped fingernail extension and then bonded. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,003,518 to Stephany L. Jensen, also uses an over/under fingernail approach. Specifically, a flexible preferably silk material is adhered to the nail and lateral sides of the device are folded around the fingernail. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,135,562 to Eva Matragna and Yosh Hukama. This prior art utilizes a crescent-shaped underside artificial nail with a stop step that abutted the living nail. U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,595 to David H. Aylott invented a similar crescent-shaped method with an attached application handle, which is removed after the fingernail support is placed. And, U.S. Pat. No. 5,806,537 to Juliet Wittwer presented an apparatus providing artificial support from underneath the nail. The support “wherein the inside end of said artificial support nail is shaped to contact the finger where the finger and natural nail come together. The interface where the nail and nail come together is the hyponychium. Stephany L. Jenson in U.S. Pat. No. 5,924,427 presented a nail reinforcing device conforming to the underneath surface of the natural fingernail. It “has a rearward curved (convex) edge to butt up against the front of the finger when placed under the nail.” This location is where the hyponychium is found.
All the prior under-nail support systems have had their own set of problems, specifically the interaction between the convex crescent shape and the skin under the human fingernail called the hyponychium. Since the hyponychium, the protective bed of soft tissue (or skin) under the human fingernail, is extremely sensitive and easily damaged, devices that abut against this soft tissue can cause damage, including bleeding and severe pain and promote both bacterial and fungal infections. The previous under-nail devices can cause pain and infections resulting in the user not being able to be use them successfully. Additionally the shallowness of crescent shape made it impossible for previous art to reach, strengthen or support the fingernails lateral and leading edges which is typically where nail damage occurs. Such complications may be the reason why in a society where long finished nails are often sought after and preferred, we do not have a useable under-nail alternative, until now.